Linear Equations

A linear equation is an equation that represents a line on a graph.   The basic form for a linear equation is as follows: 

y=mx+b

Where m is the slope of the line and b is the y-intercept.  

This is known as the slope-intercept form for the equation of a line. 

If you are given any two points, (x1, y1) and (x2, y2), on the coordinate plane, you can use them to determine the equation of the line through those points. 

The first step is to find the slope of the line using the following formula: 

m=y2 - y1x2 - x1

Once you’ve determined the slope, you can use the following point-intercept form for the equation of a line. 

y-y1=m(x-x1)

Where m is the slope just determined and (x₁,y₁) are one of the given points. 

The following document contains the complete transcript and notes from the video presentations below.   

In the videos below, you will learn the following:

• How to find the equation of a line through any two points.
• How to interpret the slope of a line. 
• How to graph the equation of a line.  A hand tool for graphing functions is Desmos Graphing <https://www.desmos.com/calculator>